


Trust

by ProducingTrashyContent



Category: Black Clover - Tabata Yuki (Anime & Manga)
Genre: Crying, Dorothy is a good friend, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Fuegoleon is Nozel's best friend, I made Nozel cry please don't attack me, Jack and Yami are both idiots, Mentions of Fuegoleon Vermillion, Mentions of Noelle Silva, Mentions of other Magic Knight Captains, Sad and Happy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-24
Updated: 2020-10-24
Packaged: 2021-03-08 19:47:00
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,022
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27181987
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ProducingTrashyContent/pseuds/ProducingTrashyContent
Summary: Nozel wants to tell his siblings how their mother truly died, but there was no way he could do that without sentencing himself to death. One day, Nozel meets a woman who could change that.
Relationships: Nozel Silva/Dorothy Unsworth
Comments: 5
Kudos: 50





	Trust

**Author's Note:**

> There was no content for this ship but there are a lot of shippers, so I took it upon myself to write something for this pair! Hope you enjoy!

The light rain that fell from the sky was not a proper representation of Nozel's current mood. Light droplets raining down from the sky weren't large enough to make the tears running down his face seem like rain and not tears. A dampness on his cloak drew his eyes downward.  
His little sister's hands pulled his cloak to hide her face from the tombstone in front of them. Nebra was sobbing; she had hoped sticking her face in her older brother's clothing would muffle her cries. On Nozel's other side, Solid took a tentative step forward toward the tombstone.  
Being only 3 years old, Solid was still a bit too young to understand what had happened to his mother. All he knew was that she was gone, and his older siblings were sad. After his first step, Solid felt eyes on him, so he looked up at the person closest to him - his big brother. Nozel's eyes were shut tight trying to told tears back. Solid did want to know why they put his mom's big bed into the ground, but he felt being here for his brother while he was sad was more important. Glancing down at the teddy bear in his arms, Solid gave it a hard look before gently handing it over to his brother. Nozel's eyes widened when he felt the fuzzy object press against his skin. After taking Solid's teddy bear into his hands, Nozel turned his eyes to his baby brother. Solid had a sad smile on his face. Even if he didn't know what was happening, he at least knew the right face to make.  
"Here, brother." Solid pushed his teddy bear closer to Nozel's chest. "Brownie makes me feel better when I'm sad. Maybe he'll make you feel better too."  
Nozel dropped to his knees and pulled Solid into a hug. Letting his tears flow, Nozel glanced at his mother's final resting place through his blurry vision. After some time, Nozel let go of Solid. The patter of rain on the stones helped Nozel relax himself and let his mind wander to other things to forget the pain. Before he could completely immerse himself in his thoughts, a small cooing from behind him dragged him out of the hole he was digging himself. Nozel turned around to meet the baby's eyes. A servant held the newborn and was rubbing her stomach. It seemed she was ticklish. Noelle giggled for a while before finally calming down. Noelle. Poor little Noelle. If only Nozel knew how tell his family the true cause of Acier Silva's death, Noelle could've grown up a happy child. But Acier's cause of death was a little too out-of-this-world (literally) for his serious family to take as the true cause.  
"You stupid baby! I hate you!" Nebra pointed an aggressive finger at Noelle while wiping her runny nose on her sleeve. As Nebra's voice grew, tears welled up in Noelle's eyes until she was bawling. "If it wasn't for you, mommy would still be alive! I wish you'd never been born! I HATE YOU!"  
Nebra turned herself around and let herself lean against her brother. Now that Nebra had vented her frustrations, all that was left was pain. Nebra moved Nozel's arm to rest on her back and latched on to his torso. Nozel patted her back. He felt helpless not being able to soothe his sister's tears. He would never be able to. Only time and acceptance could soothe tears such as these.  
"Presenting Lord Vermillion, Lady Vermillion, and their children: eldest daughter Mereoleona, eldest son Fuegoleon, and youngest son Leopold." The Vermillion family was a little late, but they had made it nonetheless.  
Nozel silently watched as Fuegoleon, his best friend, laid flowers down on Acier's grave before standing beside his sister as tears streamed down both his and Mereoleona's face. Leopold let out a coo that momentarily distracted Fuegoleon from his depressing thoughts. Fuegoleon. His rival and best friend. Oh how badly Nozel wanted to tell his friend what had truly happened. Unfortunately there was no way Nozel could do so without activating Megicula's curse and sending himself to an early grave, so Nozel was thrown for a loop when met a woman who could prevent just that.

* * *

  
"Everyone, I would like you to meet the new captain of the Coral Peacocks - Dorothy Unsworth."  
The woman that came into the meeting was far from what Nozel expected. She was short - very short - with short purple hair, a cloak that was way too long for her, and a pointy witch hat on her head. She was very wide-awake and chipper as she sat herself down on Nozel's left side. For some reason, he got the feeling she wanted to sleep through the captains' meeting, although he wasn't sure why. How could one sleep through such an important meeting? He didn't know, but he wanted to ask her. It was after the meeting when Nozel spoke to Dorothy Unsworth for the first time.

* * *

  
Julius Novachrono, the newly crowned 28th Wizard King, tended to rent out a bar for the magic knight captains to relax in after a meeting or big event. Nozel appreciated the downtime he got after meetings, even if he wouldn't admit it. This time, it gave him a chance to speak to the new brigade captain.  
"Wah ha ha! That's another loss for you, and another win for me!" Yami cackled as he pulled a stack of poker chips close to him.  
"You've only won twice in a row, Sukehiro." Jack grumbled as Yami continued his teasing. Eventually, Jack launched himself across the table and wrestled Yami to the ground. While the other captains worked to separate them, Nozel slid over to Dorothy, who was dozing off in a corner of the bar.  
Letting out a small cough, Nozel made Dorothy aware of his presence. Dorothy let out a yawn and stretched her arms as far as she could before attending Nozel.  
"Hi there! What can I do you for?"  
Nozel was taken aback by the manner in which she spoke, but he ignored his own confusion and spoke. "Hello. I am Captain Nozel Silva of the Silver Eagles. I-"  
"Silver eagle is right. Your hair is silver, and you kinda look a little like an eagle." Dorothy reached up to poke at Nozel's braid. Frowning, Nozel swatted her hand away.  
"I'll have you know that-"  
"I think you're braid makes you look good. I like it." Dorothy interrupted Nozel again. After hearing the compliment, Nozel's mouth opened and closed a few times. He was never taught the proper behaviour on how to take a compliment. No one ever complimented his braid anyway. Not since his mother.  
Composing himself, Nozel thanked Dorothy. "Thank you. Now, I wanted to ask you why you seemed like you wanted to fall asleep at the meeting earlier. I don't want to work with another slacker like that foreigner."  
Nozel jerked his chin in the direction of Yami. At the moment, Yami had his katana out and had assumed a battle stance. On the other end of the bar, Jack had the scythes on his arms out and ready. Charlotte was scolding Jack and Yami (mostly Yami). Fuegoleon was trying to convince the two men to drop the dispute and get along while William offered a solution that would please them both. The other captains simply watched from the sidelines.  
"Oh," Dorothy chuckled, "I promise I'm not like that. I sleep a lot only because of my Dream Magic. I need to sleep to get the creative juices flowing."  
Dream Magic? He'd never heard of that before. Nozel opened his mouth to ask her how it worked when she placed a finger on his lips. "You were about to ask how my magic worked, weren't you? Why don't I just show you instead?"  
A glittery glow enveloped them. The glow became thicker and thicker until it became impossible for Nozel to see his surroundings. Once the glow cleared, Nozel caught a glimpse of a pink before he began falling. Instinctively, Nozel pulled out his grimoire and created a flying eagle out of his mercury magic to stop his descent. Now that he wasn't falling, Nozel scanned his surroundings. He had no idea where he was. And Dorothy was no where to be found.  
"Ooh, you managed to stop yourself from falling. You have good instincts. I like you!" Nozel turned and met Dorothy, who was on a...floating chair? _Chairs cannot float, so how is she floating? Then again, all the things around me are floating as well._ Everything in the nearby vicinity was floating without the use of magic. At least, that's what it seemed to be.  
"What is going on here? Where have you taken me?" Nozel floated up to Dorothy and began questioning her. Dorothy shot him and innocent smile.  
"So aggressive and passionate! My my!"  
Nozel frowned. "Don't avoid the questions. Answer them."  
"Of course! I could never say no to a cutie like you. But first, sit here. You don't want to use up all your magic riding that thing, do you?" Out of thin air, a large bed appeared beneath Nozel. It seemed solid, but there was always a chance it was a trap. Carefully setting one foot on the bed, Nozel placed his foot on different parts of the bed until he concluded the bed was harmless and solid, then he slid onto the bed and put his grimoire away.  
"You seem very intrigued by that bed there. The bed that appeared out of nowhere thanks to my Dream Magic. This whole place is part of my magic as well. I call it Glamour World."  
Now on solid ground, Nozel took a moment to really examine his surroundings. There were all kinds of strange objects floating around. It didn't seem like this place had an end either. Dorothy was right to call this place glamour world. It was enormous.  
"Glamour World is a separate realm that's totally isolated from the real world, so any limitations that the real world has have no effect here." Nozel's eyes shot open. _Mother's curse. Could I - could I speak about it in here freely?_ He had to make sure.  
"Dorothy..."  
"Hm?" Dorothy made her way over to the bed and stood on it beside Nozel.  
"Are you sure that anything that limits us in the real world has no effect here? Would a curse fall under that category?"  
"Yes, of course. I've tested it before."  
"Really?"  
"Yeah, why do you ask?" Dorothy asked, cocking her hear to the right.  
Nozel shut his mouth. He didn't know this woman, and yet he almost spilled his family's deepest secret to her. She didn't need to know, even if her tiny stature and strong magic made her a little attractive in Nozel's eyes.  
Nozel huffed at her question. "No reason. I only wanted to know."  
Maybe Dorothy could become a confidant. If Nozel deemed her trustworthy enough, he might tell her about his mother. Even if she wasn't trustworthy enough, Nozel could bring Fuegoleon here and tell him the truth. _Wait, but why choose to tell her? I've only just met her, whereas I've known Fuegoleon for so long. Why not just bring him here instead?_ Nozel glanced over at Dorothy, who had created a buffet of roast duck especially for him, and he felt his heart rate pick up slightly. He didn't know what that feeling was, but something told him he would be able to trust her.

* * *

  
Nozel spoke with the tiny witch many times over the past few months. His original intent was to speak with her to see what kind of person she was and how trustworthy she was. If he could speak about what happened to his mother in her Glamour World, he would be able to tell his siblings the truth. Telling Nebra and Solid the truth would get them to stop harassing poor Noelle. It was all for the benefit of his family. Nozel wasn't too sure when he began to look forward to his meetings with Dorothy.  
"How's the roast duck Nozel?" Dorothy leaned forward in her chair.  
Nozel finished the bite of food he was eating before responding. "It's wonderful. Thank you. It eludes me as to why the servants won't let me have roast duck more than twice a week..."  
"Probably because your siblings want to have their favourite foods too. Say, how are your siblings doing?"  
"They're fine," Nozel responded curtly. "Nebra is working well with her squad mates, and Solid is...Solid is the same as before."  
Dorothy scratched the back of her head before grabbing the last macaron off her plate and nibbling on it. She was waiting for Nozel to mention his youngest sibling. After a few minutes of waiting, Dorothy knew he wouldn't bring her up, so she decided to ask him.  
"And what about Noelle? How's she doing? It's almost time for her to receive her grimoire, right?"  
Nozel's face contorted into an emotion that Dorothy wasn't able to grasp. Or maybe it was a mix of different emotions. Returing his face to its usual expression, Nozel drew in a deep breath.  
"Noelle...she's fine. Her magic control is still very off, she refuses to let anyone help her with her magic, and she brings shame upon the House of Silva every day. She's better off staying off the battlefield, as she would be a hindrance to the other magic knights there."  
Nozel continued spouting negative comments about his youngest sister, but something in his face made Dorothy believe these words had no depth to them. The words about his sister were a mask that hid the truth, something Dorothy had been wanting to learn about for some time. She just had to reach out and find it.  
"You sound as though you're just worried about her."  
Nozel froze upon hearing the sentence. How did she figure him out so easily? Maybe it was a lucky guess. He preferred that people thought Noelle was useless so that she would stay off the battlefield, but he didn't actually think she was useless. It was definitely a backwards thought process, but Nozel didn't know of another way to handle the situation when this all started. He was only 14 then. Since the idea of Noelle being a failure worked to keep her away from the Magic Knights for now, he let his younger siblings bully Noelle into thinking she was a failure. Nozel knew it wasn't right, but then he would have to tell his siblings how their mother actually died. He couldn't do that without endangering them; that is, unless Dorothy turned out to be someone worthwhile that Nozel could entrust a secret to. But for now, Nozel couldn't trust Dorothy until he deemed her trustworthy, even if the fluttering in his chest told him otherwise.  
Coughing, Nozel finally addressed Dorothy. "I-I am not. She's useless. I don't understand how a royal with such weak magic was born into the House of Silva."  
"Look, I'm probably going to sound really nosy for saying this," Dorothy muttered, "but I feel as though your hiding how you really feel about Noelle."  
Nozel felt his jaw tighten. So she really did notice. It was very difficult to hide how he truly felt about his youngest sister, but Nozel thought he'd done a rather impressive job up to this point. But his worries about her joining a Magic Knight squad next year had become more prevalent in this last year. Nozel hated how he treated Noelle, but he wanted to keep her safe. He didn't want to lose her like he lost his mother. He had to protect what little family he had left.  
Dorothy had been expecting some nasty retort from Nozel, so she was shocked to see a torn expression on his face. His face struggled to keep the composure that royals always had. The expression on Nozel's face cracked before he hid his face into the crook of Dorothy's neck. Frozen, Dorothy didn't know what to do. Upon hearing Nozel's quiet sniffles and realizing that he was crying did she finally know what to do. It seemed as though the pressure that had been built up over many years had cracked in this exact moment. Patting and rubbing his back, Dorothy whispered comforting words into his ear.  
"Hey, hey, hey. It's ok. Crying is good. I don't know much about being a royal, but I can tell it's hard. It's ok to cry once in a while. Also, I know you'll probably shame yourself for this later, so take some comfort in knowing I won't tell anyone."  
Nozel quickly regained his composure and narrowed his eyes at Dorothy. Was she just saying that to get on his good side? Would she really not tell anyone? He realized this was the first major test in determining how trustworthy Dorothy could be. Nozel waved off Dorothy's kind gestures and pulled himself away from Dorothy to finish his roast duck in silence.

* * *

  
Nozel was usually one to ignore rumours. They were more of a pain and a hindrance than anything else. But for the next few weeks, Nozel was determined to learn all he could about the rumours regarding the captains. He needed to know whether or not Dorothy had been true to her word. After a few weeks of listening to the endless gossip surrounding the captains, Nozel safely concluded that Dorothy had kept her word and stayed silent. It relieved him that little old grannies in bakeries were discussing where Yami had come from rather than his breakdown in Glamour World.

* * *

  
Nozel wanted to tell Dorothy about the curse, but each time he tried to tell her, his brain told him to do it next time. He did this several times until several months had passed.  
Over the course of the last few months, Dorothy had become more and more sluggish until she was nearly falling asleep whenever she stopped moving. Nozel knew his time was short, so he made a point to steal her away after the most recent captain's meeting.  
Dorothy shook her head as she tried to make out who had dragged her away from the other captains. A familiar silver head was the only thing she could see through her sleep-deprived haze. She gave Nozel a small smile and muttered a quiet good morning. Nozel ignored the fact that she had mentioned it was morning when it was really the afternoon and shook the little witch awake. The small shake pulled Dorothy out of an I'm-going-to-drop-dead-if-I-don't-sleep state to an I'm-sort-of-sleepy state. Once Dorothy caught a glimpse of the expression on Nozel's face, she didn't hesitate to open Glamour World for him.  
Nozel felt himself plop down onto a large couch as he was dragged into Glamour World. Dorothy sat beside him on the couch a moment later. Worry laced Dorothy's sleepy expression as she looked Nozel in the eyes. Nozel's eyes were glazed over as he stared off into the distance.  
"Hey," Dorothy leaned her head against his shoulder. At the touch, Nozel snapped out of his thoughts. "What's wrong? You're never like this outside of Glamour World."  
Nozel questioned himself. Why was he even bothering to tell her this? It was his darkest family secret after all. Fuegoleon was a royal of the Clover Kingdom and his best friend. Why didn't he just drag Fuegoleon here and tell him instead? Nozel knew that Fuegoleon could keep the secret. Why should he trust this little woman, who turned out to be a foreigner from the Witches Forest, with this secret? What did she have over Fuegoleon? Turning to Dorothy, the weird feeling in his chest gave him the answer to his last question.  
Dorothy eventually turned her eyes away from his and studied his hands instead. Nozel jumped when she grabbed his hands and held them in hers. It was then when Nozel actually noticed how small Dorothy was in comparison to him. Her fingers were about 3/4 the length of his. Her palms were very soft as though she used moisturizer daily. As she squeezed his hands, he felt how warm they were. His were cold. Dorothy rubbed her hands against his to warm them up. Nozel's eyes took note of how small her wrists were, which then drew his eyes to her petit frame. With such a tiny frame, it was a wonder Dorothy managed to face off against foes much larger than herself. Nozel's eyes slowly made their way higher until they met Dorothy's eyes. He never noticed the color of her eyes. They were 2 colors, with the outer part being a lavendery purple and the inner part being a cyan color. Her eyes were very pretty. Nozel felt himself getting lost in her eyes.  
Dorothy felt herself squirm under Nozel's gaze, but she couldn't seem to tear herself away from his purple eyes. It wasn't until Nozel's stomach rumbled was she finally able to look away.  
"Are you hungry again?" Dorothy shot Nozel a small smile.  
Nozel glanced down before looking back up at Dorothy. "It turns out I am."  
Dorothy raised her hand to conjure up food, but she stopped herself and brought her hand down to rest on Nozel's again. "I feel as though you had something you wanted to share with me, but I see you don't want to anymore. I just wanted to let you know that I'm here if you need someone to talk to. I know it sounds very cliche, but I am. And if you choose not to tell me anything, that's fine too."  
Dorothy created a small table with a plate full of roast duck. There was a smaller plate beside it with a pink macaron on it. Nozel quickly finished his plate while Dorothy slowly nibbled on her macaron. After she finished, she leaned against Nozel's side until she fell asleep. Once she did, Glamour World disappeared and left Nozel sitting on the floor of a hallway outside the Wizard King's office.  
Dorothy wrapped her long cloak around herself and snuggled into Nozel's side. He was definitely much warmer than the floor. Nozel was torn between staying like this with her and walking away for the sake of appearances. Eventually, Nozel pulled himself away from the sleepy witch and made his way back to the Silver Eagles' base.

* * *

  
Dorothy had finally fallen into her long slumber that took place every few months. She never used her magic when she was asleep, so there was no way Nozel could use her Glamour World. It was only a few weeks into Dorothy's slumber when Nozel was summoned to the Coral Peacocks' base.  
Nozel had heard there was a recent scuffle with some citizens near the Coral Peacocks' base. He didn't believe it had affected Dorothy in any way, so Nozel wasn't surprised to be greeted by his younger cousin and vice-captain of the Coral Peacocks, Kirsch Vermillion.  
"Ah, cousin Nozel." Kirsch entered the room with a storm of petals trailing behind him. "How are you this fine day? You're as beautiful as ever, although, not as beautiful as I am."  
Nozel drew in a deep breath. "I don't want to hear your shenanigans today. Why was I summoned here?"  
Kirsch walked into a hallway and motioned Nozel to follow him. "The Wizard King requested a small team up between some members of the Coral Peacocks and the Silver Eagles to ensure an incident like this doesn't happen again."  
"If we are to discuss such a simple matter, why do you need to take me somewhere else? I'll send some of my members to patrol around here."  
"Dear cousin, did you hear that rumour that it was a scuffle with civilians?"  
Nozel frowned. "Yes."  
"That explains why you thought it was a simple matter. The scuffle occurred with an organized crime group. They were very filthy and lowly. I had more mana than the entire group combined. Anyway, this is a matter for captains to discuss."  
"But Captain Dorothy is-"  
Kirsch waved his hand dismissively. "Yes, well, she _was_ asleep. The scuffle was large enough that she had to wake up and use her magic."  
_Wow, this group must be a lot stronger than we're used to. But, Dorothy is awake...Maybe I can - No! I mustn't be selfish. I'm only speaking to her to be able to tell my siblings the truth!_ Nozel shook his head and continued walking _._  
After some more walking, Kirsch stopped in front of a door and motioned to it. "Here's Captain Dorothy's office. Now, I leave you here, as I must go spread my beauty to the filth of this kingdom and show them that a god does walk upon this earth."  
"Ugh." Nozel rolled his eyes as Kirsch skipped off into another hallway. Hopefully he'd stay there for good.  
Shaking his head, Nozel turned his attention back to the door. Nozel raised his hand to knock when the door opened and a small head poked out of the opening.  
"Kirsch?" Dorothy yawned. "Did you bring Nozel?"  
Dorothy glanced upward and met Nozel's eyes. Squinting, Dorothy gave Nozel a small smile and pulled him into her dark office. It was hard to make out anything around him, although there was some light penetrating the dark curtains in front of the window. Nozel could make out the vague shape of a desk. Dorothy pulled him to the side and sat him down on a couch. Nozel nearly jumped when he felt Dorothy lean on his side. It was the same side that Dorothy had fallen asleep on when she had first slipped into her slumber. Pulling himself from his thoughts, Nozel turned his attention to Dorothy. The room wasn't dark enough to damper the sleepy smile on her face.  
"Hey stranger, how's life been?"  
Nozel opened his mouth so say something but shut it at the last second. What if he said something stupid? What if he said something that offended her? But why did he care? Turning his gaze down to Dorothy, Nozel watched as she let out a small yawn. Dorothy seemed to notice him watching her, as she met his eyes a few moments later. Something on Nozel's lower face caught Dorothy's eye, because her eyes were fixed in one place for several seconds before meeting his eyes again and smiling. Nozel found that a bit weird.  
"Is there something on my face?"  
"Yes"  
Nozel flew into a panic. His fingers roamed his face in search for whatever was on it. Maybe it was a dirt smudge or maybe some sauce on his face. Giggles broke the silence in the room and the intensity of his search. Nozel covered his face as Dorothy's laughing became louder. Was something on his face causing her to laugh at him? Eventually, Dorothy's laughs ceased. She sighed as she pulled Nozel's hands away from his face.  
"You're really smart Nozel, but sometimes you can be a clueless idiot."  
Now Nozel was ticked off. "And why is that? Is it because I have something so horrible on my face that you had to laugh at me?"  
"No, silly. You had a smile on your face."  
"O-oh." The embarrassment hit him like a brick. He really was a clueless idiot after all.  
"Why did you summon me here anyway?" Nozel changed the subject in the hopes that she would forget his idiocity, but the chances of that were slim.  
"To discuss the scuffle with the bandit group, but also, I wanted to hang out again. We haven't seen each other since the last time I was awake."  
"We see each other at captains meetings all the time."  
Dorothy let out a small huff. "But that's not the same."  
"I guess so"  
"Anyway, how've you been Nozel? How are your siblings and your father?"  
Nozel stiffened at the mention of his father. Lord Silva was very distant from his family, only occasionally showing up for special events. He showed up for Acier's birthday a month ago. Acier had passed many years ago, but that didn't stop the Silvas from celebrating her life. Despite Noelle, Nebra, and Solid being constantly at war with each other, they banded together to make sure Lord Silva didn't offend Acier's name in any way.  
"H-he was fine," Nozel spat out. "My siblings are fine as well. They didn't fight when Father was here."  
"Didn't fight?" Dorothy echoed. "It's good that they didn't, but why didn't they?"  
Nozel sighed. "It was my mother's birthday, so Father crawled out of whatever hole he lives in the majority of the year and showed up. My siblings may fight, but they won't tolerate anyone insulting Mother, even if that person happened to be our Father."  
Dorothy could tell Nozel wasn't comfortable speaking about his father, so she changed the subject. "Well, enough about him. Wanna chat some more over roast duck in Glamour World?"  
As much as he was tempted by the offer, Nozel felt it best to refuse. Dorothy was so kind to him, and yet the only reason he started speaking to her in the first place was for his own purposes. It didn't feel right to continue spending time with her if he didn't tell her the truth. There was a chance that she might hate him for the rest of her life, but Nozel would rather be honest than lie to her. His mother raised him as a gentleman, and, as a gentleman, Nozel had to take the high road. Lies would only make her hate him more. He couldn't lie to the one woman he'd become fond of. _No! I don't like her that way. It's just that she has many things in common with Mother, that's all. I don't desire her in any way._  
"I appreciate the offer, but I can't."  
Dorothy cocked her head. "Why not?"  
Nozel drew in a deep breath. This is where he lost her trust. "It's not right that I keep meeting with you when the only reason I originally spoke with you was for my own selfish purposes."  
Nozel spotted Dorothy's heartbroken face out of the corner of his eye, but he continued staring at the ground. He couldn't look at that heartbroken face directly.  
"What do you mean by that?" Dorothy asked in a quiet voice.  
Nozel frowned. "I originally approached you because there was something I needed to tell my siblings that could only be done in your Glamour World. I used you for your magic. But, I don't dislike you. I-I become rather fond of you. I understand if you hate me. I don't deserve anything after using you. So go ahead and hate me."  
Dorothy's brokenhearted expression slowly changed to a relieved one. "Oh, oh boy. You scared me, Nozel. When you said "using me", I thought you were going to exploit me for your own sexual pleasures. But that's what you were worried about? I mean, sure, I'm not delighted that you only started talking to me for your own reasons, but I don't hate you."  
"You don't?"  
Dorothy leaned against Nozel and held onto his arm. "No. It's kinda the opposite. I guess you could say I've become fond of you as well."  
"You have?" Nozel felt his heart rate pick up. "Really?"  
"Mhm."  
"I-really?"  
"You said you had something important you needed to tell your siblings, right? Why don't we go get them and tell them in Glamour World?" Dorothy asked while changing the subject. Nozel shook his head.  
"I would prefer to tell you first. I would also like you ask you if I should share this information with my siblings after I have told you of this issue."  
"Alright."  
Dorothy pulled them into Glamour World. Once they settled in, Nozel told Dorothy about the true cause of his mother's death. Dorothy was shocked Nozel was able to stay silent for so long. Now understanding why Nozel was so overprotective of Noelle, Dorothy gave Nozel a hug. Nozel buried his face in Dorothy's shoulder, trying to hide the silent tears that spilled.  
"Hey, like I said last time, it's ok to cry. I'll be here for you." Dorothy mumbled into his ear.  
"You will?" Nozel sniffled.  
"If you want me to, I will."  
"Can you be there for me all the time?" Nozel slapped a hand over his mouth as soon as the words left it. Asking her _that_ question after crying like this? There's was no way that would happen.  
Dorothy shot him a puzzled expression. "What do you mean?"  
"I-It was nothing." Nozel muttered as he wiped his face with a handkerchief. Squinting her eyes, Dorothy stared at Nozel's face, making him feel uncomfortable.  
"I see those rosy cheeks, Silva. What do you want from me?"  
Nozel's eyes went wide. Why was his body betraying him like this? "Nothing-I don't-no..."  
"I feel as though you're asking me to be there for you all the time, which would mean I would have to be your girlfriend to do that. Is that what you were asking me?"  
Returing his face to its usual expression, Nozel frowned. "I wasn't asking anything of the sort."  
Dorothy smirked. "So then what's with the blush on your face?"  
"It's hot in here is all."  
Nozel frowned and closed his eyes. Hopefully she would change the topic and they could forget about this whole incident. A pair of lips on Nozel's cheek broke his composure. His jaw dropped and his face was red.  
Dorothy had a finger on her chin as she examined his face. "You know, I thought that would fix your problem, but it seems I made it worse. Maybe on the lips..."  
"Are you trying to steal kisses from me, you tiny witch?"  
"I wouldn't have to steal them if I was your girlfriend." She said in a sing-song voice.  
_She's heavily implying that she wants to be my girlfriend, but she could be leading me into a trap or giving me false hope._ Nozel squinted as Dorothy, who batted her eyelashes at him. Rolling his eyes, Nozel sighed. "You can be my girlfriend."  
"No."  
"Huh?" Nozel was confused. Isn't that what she wanted? Of course, she had given him false hope.  
"I know what you're thinking, Nozel," Dorothy smiled. "But I'm not giving you false hope. I'll be with you, but only if you'll be with me too."  
So this was real. She wasn't giving him false hope or leading him to an early grave. She desired him, and he desired her. He should yes. Say yes.  
"I-um-"  
Dorothy was straddling Nozel's lap. She held his face in her hands and looked straight into his eyes. "Just say yes."  
"Yes."  
"Cool."  
Before Nozel could even process what happened, Dorothy pressed her lips against his. His hands settled on her lower back unconsciously. Her lips were soft, and she seemed as though she knew exactly what she was doing. Nozel didn't have a single clue. He knew next to nothing about women. Nozel was too busy to even so much as look at a woman, yet this one somehow managed to take up his entire headspace. Not sure of what to do, Nozel followed Dorothy's movements until they broke apart for air.  
Nozel wrapped his arms around Dorothy and allowed himself to smile a little. It was nice to feel happy and loved. Even if they wouldn't publicly announce their relationship yet, Nozel knew that they would meet in secret until the time was right. For now, this would be their little secret. Nozel thought about sharing this with his siblings but then decided that they didn't need to know about Dorothy right now. His thoughts then shifted to his mother. Dorothy was very similar to Acier Silva, which was probably one of the reasons Nozel began spending time with her in the first place. Closing his eyes, Nozel pulled Dorothy closer. He just hoped he wouldn't lose her like he lost his mother.


End file.
